Desperate to Play
by Chibiscuit
Summary: Marik wants to play. Badly. But things don't go as he wants and if things don't go as he wants...well you'll see. Add an annoyed Bakura to that and you've got yourself a dangerous situation. Who will be victorious: two bishies or modern technology?
1. Chapter 1

I wrote this a while ago and finally decided to post it. There was a bit of delay because, ironically, I did lose to technology a few days ago. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this. Oh and remember it's YGOTAS-verse.

Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh! belongs to Kazuki Takahashi and Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged belongs to LittleKuriboh. In other words, I own nothing.

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><p>The spirit of the millennium ring considered himself a very patient person. After all, not just anyone can be stuck in piece of jewellery for thousands of years and still keep his sanity...somewhat. However even he had a limit. It wasn't reached yet but coming pretty close nonetheless. And his partner in crime sure was beginning to push it. How much longer did he intent to stay in that see-through closet of his? I mean, only Marik could be so obviously gay and still deny it without hesitation. Truly, it was an art, one that both amused and annoyed Bakura to no end. It was great fun to mess with boy's head and twist his words around. Not that they needed much twisting. But on the other hand, it also meant that his partner in crime was just that: his partner in crime. Bakura would have preferred to be able to just drop those last two words. He sometimes wonders why he doesn't just have his way with the Egyptian, and forcefully pull him out. Who was going to stop him? Nobody, that is! Except he himself and then he wonders why he stops himself. Not that there is any point in wondering, he knows the answer full well. The next step in his daily thinking pattern is getting fed up with his thinking, shaking his head and deciding to just stare at something amusing. Most of the time that would be Marik, and this time was no different. Bakura shifted his position on the couch as he watched the tanned boy. Marik sat at his desk, impatiently tapping his fingers on it.<p>

Installing game...  
>5% complete<p>

"Oh Godcard! This is taking forever!", Marik dramatically exclaimed. The drumming of his fingers got louder as Marik's patience was running thinner and thinner.

Installing game...  
>6% complete<p>

"Oh yay, one percent extra! And look, it only took 10 frigging minutes!", his voice dripping with obvious sarcasm. He glanced at the box that had contained the game. He grabbed the manual and started skimming through it hoping that it would pass the time.

Time did pass, however...

Installing game...  
>8% complete<p>

Marik's eye twitched a little as he glared at the screen. At this rate he was going to die of old age before he could ever attain in-game immortality.

"BAKURA!"

Said boy nearly jumped when Marik suddenly twirled his chair around and yelled his name. He quickly regained his composure. "Yes, Marik?", he asked in an extremely calm and patient voice, hoping to aggravate the impatient Egyptian even more. Judging by the look on his face, it had worked. "I command you to make this go faster!", he ordered as he outstretched his arm. He quickly withdrew it when he noticed he wasn't holding his millennium rod and that made the pose look kind of ridiculous. It took the thief every ounce of self-control not to laugh.

"I don't take orders from you", he replied as serious as possible. No problem of course, Bakura was the master of masking his emotions.

"Oh don't be like that, Fluffy! We're partners in crime! You are obliged to help me!"

"Marik, this has nothing to do with crime, so why in the name of Ra would I help you?"

"Come on, Bakuuuuraaaa~"

"Stop it! Fine, I'll help you!" Marik grinned at his victory. "Anything to make you stop whining like a little girl...", the white-head added as he got out of the couch. "Hey! I resent that!", Marik replied as he threw him glare.

"Obviously. Now, what was it that you wanted me to do again?"

His sense of victory over their previous argument quickly seeping in again, Marik was grinning once again. "Make it go faster", he commanded as he twirled his chair around again.

Bakura smirked, "Is that all?"

"Yes."

"You sure?"

"Yes! Radammit just do it already!"

"As you wish.", Marik couldn't see the smirk on Bakura's face getting even bigger. He looked at the progress.

Installing game...  
>18% complete<p>

His chair was gently pulled backwards. "Here we go...", Bakura whispered right next Marik's ear. He pulled his head back, firmly took the chair in both hands and with all his power spun it around. Quickly jumping out of the way so Marik's flailing limbs wouldn't hit him, Bakura watched with amusement as the Egyptian let out a surprised yelp. Which turned into screaming when he got catapulted out of his ridiculously fast, makeshift merry-go-round. A loud thump and a string of curses followed suite. The thief laughed, his efforts of self-control momentarily forgotten. Marik slowly got up, cursing all the while and rubbing his lower back. Bakura stifled his laughter as he saw the tanned boy shooting him a death glare. Not that it made any impression whatsoever. "Why the EFF did you do that?", he asked angrily.

"I thought you wanted me to make it go faster, so I did.", Bakura answered calmly.

"The installing! You had to speed up the installing, not my chair, binky-boy!"

"Then why didn't you say so?"

"I did! And you know it!"

"You don't say."

Marik's angry expression turned into a slight pout as he noticed that his death glare was having no effect and that Bakura was just mocking him. He huffed and took a proud stance again, looking at his partner in crime with commanding eyes.

"Fluffy, I command you to make the installing of my game go faster!"

Bakura just raised an eyebrow at him, but said nothing.

"Well? What are you waiting for! Do it!" Sometimes Marik wished he could trick Bakura into changing his name to Steve. It would make manipulating him a hell of a lot easier.

"How the bloody hell do you suggest I do that?"

Marik blinked owlishly. How? Shouldn't the spirit know that?

"Well, you know, use your ring or something!"

"So...you want me to find a gay computer expert?...or something?"

"Yes! ... wait what? No!"

"Then what, pray tell, would you have me do? You know I absolutely abhor technology."

"Heh, you're just pissed they invented security cameras."

"They're nothing a knife can't fix." Marik raised an eyebrow at this and suddenly noticed the screen from the corner of his eye, remembering what he was doing again.

Installing game...  
>35% complete<p>

"Arrrgh, look, don't change the subject!"

"But I di..."

"Use your ring", Marik interrupted, " and bent the fabric of time and space to make it so that the game is finished installing, so that I can finally be a vampire!"

"If you want to be a bloody vampire that badly, then why not just go write yourself in some fanfic as one?"

"Now that would just be silly".

"Yes, you're right, for once."

"Now stop dilly-dallying and do it already!"

"I can't"

"Excellent!...wait, what?"

"I said I can't" the whitehead deadpanned once again.

"What the frig? Why in the name of Osiris not? I thought you said you were a god?"

"I am".

"But you can't do this one EFFing little thing?"

"No".

"WHY NOT?"

"Because games tend to defy all logic of the mortal world and are therefore different and unaffected by any god.", Bakura explained matter-of-factly. Marik just stared at him for a good minute or so before replying quietly. "That made no sense whatsoever."

"Neither did your suggestion.", Bakura said as he walked back to the couch and sat on it again. "Show some bloody patience, Marik". Said Egyptian sighed and walked over to his chair. It was still spinning, albeit slowly. He sat down and turned his attention back to the screen.

Installing game...  
>32% complete<p>

"..."

Installing game...  
>32% complete<p>

Marik rubbed his eyes and looked again.

Installing game...  
>31% complete<p>

"...FRIG!", he yelled, annunciating every word and grabbing his head in frustration. From his position on the sofa, Bakura sighed. "What is it now?"

"The frigging thing is going backwards!"

"So it's a countdown?" the spirit asked innocently. This angered Marik even more, much to his delight. The Egyptian started pulling at his hair in utter desperation, but stopped when he realized what he was doing. Wouldn't want to ruin his hair, now would he? He abruptly stood up and without saying a word stormed of towards his room. Curious as to what his partner was up to, Bakura followed him. He had barely reached the door that lead to the hallway or said partner rushed past him, millennium rod and permanent marker clutched tightly in his hands. Bakura closed the door and turned his attention back to Marik. He crossed his arms as he observed the tanned boy, curious to see just what he was up to. Said boy stood defiantly in front of his laptop, grinning so evilly at it, that one might think he was looking at the pharaoh. He closed it just far enough for it not to go into sleep mode and took out his marker. A few squeaky noises later and the marker was put away and the laptop opened again. "There! I now pronounce you Steve Laptop!", he said self-satisfied, grin still in place. Bakura stared in disbelief. Was Marik really planning what he thinks he is?

"Now, Steve, I command you to properly install my game! And make it fast!"

He was. Bakura resisted the urge to facepalm. Instead he decided to continue his observation. He glanced at the screen.

Installing game...  
>31% complete<p>

He focused his eyes on Marik again, who was looking at the screen expectantly.

Installing game...  
>31% complete<p>

"Come on, Steve!"

He continued to point his rod at the screen.

Installing game...  
>32% complete<p>

"YES! Now go faster! FASTER!", Marik exclaimed excited. Bakura shifted his weight to his other foot and willed his mind out of the gutter. His gaze never left the Egyptian though, whose violet eyes were now sparkling with hope.

Installing game...  
>33% complete<p>

Those hope-filled violet eyes widened and a smile was beginning to form.

Installing game...  
>36% complete<p>

Soft laughter could be heard from the tanned boy.

Installing game...  
>40% complete<p>

Marik was laughing triumphantly now. Bakura couldn't belief what he was seeing. Of course he didn't think that this progress was due to Marik's ridiculous plan, but still, the coincidence was uncanny. But more importantly was that this would give Marik a reason to boast. An unfounded reason, but Bakura just knew that the Egyptian was convinced right now that this was all thanks to his plan. He was never going to hear the end of it. He sighed; like that boy didn't talk enough already. He looked at the screen again.

Installing game...  
>70% complete<p>

Marik just continued laughing.

Installing game...  
>80% complete<p>

"Ah, excellent! Just like that, keep it up!"

Installing game...  
>90% complete<p>

"Almost...almost..."

Installing game...  
>99% complete<p>

"Yes...yes...yes..."

Installing game...  
>78% complete<p>

"WHAT? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Installing game...  
>74% complete<p>

"STOP! I COMMAND you to stop decreasing!", Marik exclaimed frantically. Bakura was feeling relieved. That didn't last long however, as Marik was becoming more desperate with the second. "I said STOP! Obey my rod, for the love of Ra!" and with those words he thrust his rod at the screen. A bit too far and hard, knocking the laptop over. Marik roughly grabbed it and put it back, accidentally hitting it a couple of times with the rod. The machine retaliated by making a sound that even Bakura was sure it wasn't supposed to make. Marik cautiously took a step back, lest it might self-destruct. A red light flashed, blinding him for a moment. He looked at screen.

WARNING! An error has occurred. Please reboot the system. Any unsaved data or downloading/installing in progress will be lost.

Marik's eye twitched again and his fist clenched and unclenched as he tried to keep his anger under control. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Thinking he had calmed down somewhat he opened them again. That proved to be a mistake.

WARNING! An error has occurred. Please reboot the system. Any unsaved data or downloading/installing in progress will be lost.

He stalked to the door, took one of his shoes and went to stand back in front of his desk. Bakura just watched. "Here! Reboot THIS!", he yelled as he threw the shoe at the laptop with so much force that it was knocked off the desk. As the machine connected with the floor, more unusual noises erupted from it. Marik smiled evilly as he stared at the thing on the ground. "Bakura."

"Yes, Marik?", the white-head replied to show that he had his attention.

"You can go find a gay computer expert now."

**_One possibly gay computer expert's visit later..._**

"Here's your money, now get out.", Bakura 'politely' told the repairman, before shoving him outside and slamming the door close. The laptop was fixed again and Marik had been warned not to throw any objects at it, even if it "were asking for it". The installing had been restarted again. The Egyptian was not giving up that easily. Bakura had told him not to stare at the screen, waiting for it to finish. Instead he should just do something else to keep himself busy. The thief went over to the couch and sat next to tanned boy, who despite Bakura's suggestion was still staring at the screen. Just from a distance now. "By the way, what money did you pay him with?", the tanned boy asked when Bakura dropped down next to him. "Like I said, I gave him his money.", the white-head grinned. Marik grinned back, "That was to be expected from you, Fluffy. Good job!"

"Why, thank you Marik", Bakura answered as he picked up a magazine from the little table next to the sofa. He got comfortable and started reading. He didn't get very far though.

"I'm bored"

"Hn"

"I said I'm bored"

Bakura sighed, "I know and I don't care"

He noticed Marik's pout, but tried to ignore it. He focused on the words in front of him, but to no avail. Internally cursing Marik's cuteness, he put the magazine away again and turned to the Egyptian. "What do you want to do then?"

"Play Troika's Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines!"

Bakura resisted the urge to hit Marik, stood up and walked to the door.

"Hey, wait! Where are you going?"

"Out." He put on his shoes and out he went, leaving Marik to amuse himself.

Bakura cursed again when he noticed that he had forgotten to bring his knife. He shouldn't have left in such a hurry, but he really needed to get out. Besides they were running low on money anyway and today's dinner still had to be arranged. He casually walked down the streets, looking for any potential targets. If he wanted to he could always just steal the food itself but it never hurt to steal a bit extra. He smiled to himself; the prospect of theft was making him feel simply ecstatic.

Marik stared at the door, contemplating whether or not to follow his partner in crime. He glanced at his desk. He didn't really want to leave his laptop alone. He really was looking forward to playing that game. A thought suddenly struck him: why not make it a Let's play? It would be a totally new experience! Ever since he had left the tomb, he had tried to experience as much as possible. Well, the things that seemed enjoyable at least. A Let's Play seemed like fun. And thus it was decided. Now all that was left was for the game to be installed. Marik sighed at that and thought it best to take up Bakura's advice. He went to his room. In a corner, in full view, lay his yaoi collection. He had recently bought a few new ones and since he was all alone now with nothing else to do, it was a good time to read them. He picked one and returned to the living room. He briefly wondered where Bakura might have gone but quickly shook his head, telling himself that he was probably just out robbing people like always.

Bakura hated to admit it but this would all go a lot faster if Marik were with him. Not to mention that it would be even more pleasant. He'd never tell a soul, but the white-head had taken quite a liking to the Egyptian, in more way than one. Even if his plans were often beyond ridiculous and he sometimes wondered how he put up with him. Still, he saw potential in the boy. With the right guidance, namely his, he could very well make for a credible villain. The fact that he is drop-dead sexy speaks for itself of course. Despite all this Bakura was still somewhat annoyed. Not only at Marik's constant denial but also at his own feelings. He was supposed to be the great Thief King, he was supposed to be feared and stuff. The thought of having a soft spot for a mere mortal was strange to say the least. Yet he liked to think that if it became necessary, he could still kill the boy without blinking a eye. He sighed as he walked in the convenience store. Somehow he just knew that was a lie.

Sometime later he was back at their apartment, with groceries, takeout (he hated himself for knowing what Marik likes) and a whole lot of extra cash. "I'm back", he said as he entered. He got no reply. Bakura looked at the couch to see Marik asleep on it with a book lying about halfway his chest. Showing his midriff as always of course. The thief grinned; the boy was just begging to be taken advantage of. He shook his head in attempt to clear it of such thoughts and went to put the groceries and money away. He stalked back over to the sleeping boy, who stirred a little in his sleep. Bakura rolled his eyes when he saw what it was that the boy had been reading. He smirked evilly before dropping the take-out bag on the Egyptian's head, successfully waking the boy. "Argh! Hot, hot hot!" he yelled, flailing around. Bakura took the bag back, lest the food might get spilled. "Hot!", he yelled one more time.

"Thank you Marik, I know I am.", he grinned at the tanned boy.

"N-not you! I was talking about the food, binky boy! Really!"

"Of course you were".

"Yes, because you know I'm..."

"Not gay, yes, I know by now. Now pick up your yaoi and put it away, then we can eat this hot food." Marik huffed but picked up the book anyway. He wanted to keep the place tidy after all. When he came back from his room, Bakura had already set the food. Marik smiled when he saw that Bakura had bought his favourite. He immediately digged in.

"Oh, right! I had a great idea while you were away!", Marik began enthusiastically in between bites. "Oh boy..."

"Hey! You haven't even heard it yet!"

"Is it a plan to defeat the pharaoh?"

"No."

"Then I'm not sure I want to hear it..."

"Oh lighten up, Fluffy! We have evil council meetings for that issue. This is about something completely different."

"Namely?"

"Pleasure.", Marik answered, staring intently at the white-head. Bakura was trying his best to keep a straight face. "Pleasure...?", he asked to be sure, getting a nod from his partner in crime who was still staring at him. "Tell me about it."

"Well, I decided to make a Let's Play of my Bloodlines game! That way the entire world can behold my immortality!", Marik happily continued.

"Oh, you were talking about that game..."

"Of course I was. Anyway, it'll be an entirely new experience. I can't wait!"

"So, it finally finished installing?", Bakura asked, feigning interest to hide his disappointment.

"Yes! I'm going to set everything up and hopefully I'll be able to start today!"

"Why are you so bloody excited about this?"

"Because...well...It's a new experience, like I said.", Marik explained hesitantly and looked away a little. Bakura raised an eyebrow at this but decided not to push the question. "Anyway," The Egyptian continued, mood swinging around again, "Let's finish eating so I can get started." And with that he began eating happily again.

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><p>The T in the rating stands for Thiefshipping, which is so awesome some people can't handle it. Anyway, tell me what you think about this, any and all reviews are welcome!<p>

Chibiscuit


	2. Chapter 2

Ciaossu, denizens of the internet!

First of all, I'd like to thank you people for the nice reviews. I'm happy I was able to entertain some people. Hope you enjoy the second chapter as well!  
>This chapter is a crossover between Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged and a "how to do a let's play"- guide. Both things do not belong to me.<p>

Note: 'text' is literally quoted from the guide and nyah! is the sound Marik makes in the evil council video(number 3 I believe) right before he says "I am 100% straight! Really!". Didn't really know how else to write that sound.  
>Also, the guide is from wikihow, if you would like to look at it. You should be able to easily find it, but if you can't just let me know.<p>

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><p>When Marik had said that all that was left to do was set up the equipment for his Let's Play, Bakura had thought that the Egyptian knew how that had to be done. That was the impression he had gotten, what with all the confidence. However this was Marik, he could announce everything with confidence. So now the thief felt sort of foolish for ever thinking that Marik knew what he was doing. At least this time he was going about it calmly, for Marik's standards that is. He had even done some research, of which the result was lying in Bakura's lap.<p>

"Okay, tell me what the guide says.", the tanned boy commanded from his position at Steve Laptop, hands hovering over the keyboard, ready to start anytime now.

Bakura sighed, but decided to go along with it; it could prove entertaining after all. " 'Ever see a person on the internet doing what is called a Let's Play?'"

"Of course I have, how the frig would I know about it if I hadn't!", Marik interrupted. Rolling his eyes Bakura continued. " 'Well this is the guide for you, if you want to do the same.'"

"You don't say? Why else would I have looked up that information! You know what, just skip the introduction."

"That WAS the introduction. Now this is st-"

"Then hurry up and tell me what step one is!" The Egyptian once again interrupted.

" 'Find something you're good at'", Bakura decided to ignore the interruption.

"What? What's that supposed to mean?", the chair swivelled around, so he was facing the whitehead. He glared a bit, thinking he had just been insulted, though not really knowing how.

"Step one", Bakura simply said. Marik visibly 'oh'-ed, before the words sunk in and a, to him very natural, conclusion dawned on him. "But I'm good at everything!", he exclaimed.

"Really? How about being hon-"

"So we can skip that one. On to number two!", he enthusiastically spun around again.

"Or letting me bloody finish my bloody sentences...", the thief growled lowly. He began questioning his own sanity for putting up with this every day. But now wasn't really the time to go there again, so he just shook his head to clear his mind and read on. A glint of mischief sparked in his eyes as he scanned the next step's description. Best do as instructed now. He took a deep breath.

" 'BE INTERESTING!'" he yelled as loud as he could, startling Marik and nearly making him fall off his chair again. Much to the whitehead's disappointment, he had managed to hold on to the desk for balance. "What's with the EFF-", he started while turning around again. Bakura didn't let him finish, "There's an exclamation mark.", he stated matter-of-factly, enjoying the Egyptian's obvious discontent of being interrupted. "Well, this step will be a cinch for you as well.", he continued. "Part of it at least", he grinned at Marik's surprised look. The boy was puzzled, had Bakura just complimented him? It was a given that he was interesting but to hear his partner in crime actually say it was strange.

"Exactly!", he proclaimed proudly once he had recovered from his shock.

"Yes. 'Most people will not like a boring Let's Player who hardly talks at all.'", he quoted, "I think you got that covered." Marik merely blinked because before he could retort, Bakura continued, "Now you just need to do something about this 'use your comedic skills' and the 'add information' part and we're all set for step two.", he smirked.

"HEY! I'll have you know I'm a very entertaining guy!" he crossed his arms and glared. He'll probably never learn that his glares were useless. Pouting was way more effective. Bakura thanked Ra that the Egyptian hadn't figured that out yet. He shivered at the thought. It would practically be the same as changing his name to Steve.

"I won't deny that." he replied calm as ever, smirk still in place. Marik just knew he was still being mocked and intensified his glare. A couple of minutes past with them like that, until Marik had had enough, huffed and turned his back to his partner again. "You'll soon see why they call me the PUNisher, Fluffy!" he laughed a little at his own words.

"They don't call you that!"

"My Steves do!"

"They don't count."

"Nyah, shut up! They do! And soon the rest of the world will too! Now be a good kitty and tell me what step three is."

"But, Marik, we have yet to complete step two.", Bakura insisted as innocently as he could manage.

"NO! No, we don't! It's complete!"

"Prove it.", the thief demanded, "PUNish me".

Around the chair went again. If he kept that up the thing was going to break soon. Now that would be another amusing sight. "Fine! I will!"

Bakura waited expectantly as silence filled the room."...But not right now. Look it'll be the first thing I do in my Let's Play, share a bit of info and be comical! So the faster you continue reading that guide, the faster you'll have your proof."

"Comical? Oh, you're a comical relief character!"

"What? NO! Wrong binky-boy! I'm a villain! I mean, do I look like Tristan to you?"

"Luckily for you, you don't. Your voice on the other hand does add to the comedy." Bakura had to actually bite his lip to keep from laughing when he saw the Egyptian's face. He looked absolutely appalled by the accusation. "You! You dare to compare my angelic voice to...to...THAT! The nerve!", disbelief and disgust dripped from his voice.

"Yes, it's to die for.", Bakura managed to answer without laughing, much to his own surprise. The self-proclaimed villain with an angelic voice was fuming by now. He angrily stood up, knocking his chair over in the process. That nearly resulted in another near-death experience for poor Steve Laptop.

"I'll gladly prove it to you right now by once again letting you witness my beautiful singing!"

Bakura's eyes widened. "Really, there's no need." But Marik seemed to pay no attention to him and took a deep breath. "Bloody hell...", he frantically scanned the room for something to distract his partner with. "Look! It's already getting late! If you want to play today, we'll have to hurry up!" the thief tried quickly. That had caught his attention, for he looked at the window and gasped. "You're right! In another few hours the sun will set!" The whitehead couldn't help but laugh at Marik's choice of words. Said boy blinked in confusion and gave a questioning look. "Oh nothing. I think step two has been successfully completed now."

Bakura just knew Marik was feeling victorious as he watched him grin and sit back down. He turned back to the guide and read step three. " 'Find a way to record your videos.'"

"Finally, a step that's useful! About frigging time!", he exclaimed dramatically. A pause followed, in which Bakura stared at the paper in his hands and Marik waited for instructions.

"..."

"It does say where to find those ways, right?"

"I think so, but..." he trailed off as he read the explanation. Or that was what he had planned but he couldn't make head nor tail of what was written, no matter how many times he tried to.

"But...?" Marik pressed, his impatience was back full force again. Then again, did it ever leave? "Just tell me what it says!"

"Fine. 'This could be using just a simple camera or camcorder and record your screen.'", Bakura read in a monotonous voice, masking his confusion. He didn't feel like admitting he had absolutely no idea what some of the words that were about to come meant.

"Well, that sounds simple enough." Marik commented.

" 'However, this is not recommended,...'"

"Why mention it in the first place if it's not EFFing recommended?"

" '...because it tends to leave the screen blurry, especially if the game has a lot of blue and white colour in it, and often with scanlines'" The thief droned on. Marik's face lit up with realization. "I get it!", he exclaimed happily as he hit his left palm with his right fist, like people tend to do when something suddenly dawns on them. The whitehead looked up from the guide, curious as to what it was that Marik had figured out. "It means that a normal camera can't capture you," he pointed at Bakura, " because of your clothes, your skin and that white fluffy hair of yours! It'll get blurry and...uh...what the frig are scanlines?"

Bakura shrugged. Admitting he didn't know what a few words meant didn't sound so bad to him anymore. Not after hearing the Egyptian's 'insight'. He was pretty sure even Mr. Tweetums could've come up with an explanation that made more sense.

"Steve Laptop!", the Egyptian suddenly yelled, twirling around for about the billionth time that day. "You'll give me the answer!" The laptop woke up, having gone to sleep due to inactivity on its user's part. Marik opened Word, convinced that he had a dictionary function on there somewhere, and typed 'scanlines'. He frowned at the screen when he saw a red line underneath the word. "Fluffy, how do you spell scanlines?", he asked over his shoulder. Bakura spelled it out, making Marik frown again. "That's what I typed! This word doesn't seem to exist!"

"Maybe it was spelled wrong in the guide." The thief offered.

"Ah, but of course! I'll spell check it!", and so he did. "I see. I had no idea cameras held such power!" he said admiring, after staring at the screen for a moment. "Scantiness?" Marik jumped when he suddenly heard the whitehead's deep voice right next to him. "Y-Yes. That's what they meant in the guide." He said as he moved his chair a little further away from Bakura before explaining. "In other words, not only would you be blurry on camera, part of your clothes would just disappear."

If Bakura had been holding a cup of tea, he would've probably dropped it. "_What!_" was really all he could say.

"Yes! It makes sense! That's why they didn't advice me to use a camera, in case you would want to make a cameo in the game!" Bakura wanted to smack his forehead at the ludicrousness of that reasoning, but he had a better idea.

"Oh, I see." He smirked as he turned Marik's chair around to face him. "A half-naked me would be extremely distracting to you," he leant in even closer until they were mere centimetres apart, "wouldn't it, Marik." He purred the Egyptian's name. "I-I- Ba-Bakura...?"

"Yes, Marik?"

"I-STOP!", he yelled as he pushed Bakura away as hard as he could, successfully activating the law of action-reaction. Bakura quickly masked the hurt in his eyes while Marik was busy being catapulted backwards. The Egyptian must've used a lot of force because the chair only stopped when it collided with the door leading to the hallway on the other side of the room. The sandy-blond didn't move from that spot for a while. He fidgeted a bit, trying his best to avoid eye contact. He didn't really like this awkward situation. Bakura noticed the boy blush and mentally sighed. It wasn't because the Nile was a river in Egypt that an Egyptian had to swim in it. About time to crawl on a boat instead and just let it float the way it floats. No reason to fight it, really. Well, maybe next time. For now, Bakura decided to just lift the tension in the easiest way possible. By laughing. Hard.

It worked like a charm. Marik's embarrassment was immediately replaced by anger and irritation. The thief's laughter didn't stop. Seething with anger, Marik got up and took a hold of his chair, glaring at Bakura. "Stop EFFing laughing right now binky-boy or else!", he threatened. It landed on deaf ears however. True to his villain nature, Marik didn't let this slide. With all the power he could muster (and despite what some people might think, that is quite a lot) he flung his chair at his so-called partner in crime. True to his villain nature, he grinned in evil satisfaction, with gleaming eyes, when his victim stopped laughing. However, also true to his villain nature, his joy was short-lived and his violet eyes widened in horror when he saw his chair deviate from its supposed trajectory. Instead heading straight towards his loyal underling Steve Laptop. From the top of his lungs Marik commanded the chair to stop. A futile effort of course and right before the impact he closed his eyes, waiting for the crash, which came a millisecond later.

He slowly opened his eyes to witness the ruin. His desk looked like a complete mess, with his lamp knocked over, the few papers on it scattered on the floor and most important: Steve was gone! Panicked, he ran over to his desk and scanned the area. "Steve, where are you?"

"Marik, calm down."

"Calm down? Do you have any frigging idea how much trouble I went through to-"

"Yes. I know. I was there, Marik."

Marik ignored him; too busy searching under his desk for his beloved laptop. "What if he had a hard drive attack?", he dramatically exclaimed, making Bakura roll his eyes.

"You should've thought about that before you threw a bloody chair at it."

"I was aiming at you!", he yelled as he swiftly stood up again, making sure not to hit his head. Would be a shame to damage such brilliance, wouldn't it? "Now, help me lo-", he stopped mid-sentence and stared at the object in the whitehead's hands. "Ah, you stole him!"

The thief raised an eyebrow at the boy, who was pointing accusingly at him. "Yes, I did do that. I stole it from a store for you. How nice of you to remember that."

Marik went silent, feeling strangely guilty all of a sudden. He looked at the laptop again, noticing that it was completely unscathed. A scowl appeared on his face. He didn't feel like thanking the other, nor did he like being reminded of the fact that Bakura had stolen stuff especially for him. Marik had his own vision on stealing for someone else. As much as he hated to admit it, it meant a lot to him. Other people might think it's wrong, but to him it was a romantic thing to do. So naturally having Bakura of all people do it for him was not to his liking. It gave him unwanted thoughts, thoughts he had no control over and he hated that. He despised having no control more than anything else, maybe even more so than he despised the pharaoh.

Bakura noticed Marik's growing discomfort. In order to avoid another awkward situation, he held out the laptop to him. This time without laughing, smirking or even grinning. His face was completely emotionless. Marik took the laptop, mumbling something barely audible. "You're welcome, partner.", Bakura replied, even though he hadn't really heard what the Egyptian had said, but he could guess. Before Marik could fully turn around to put the laptop away again, Bakura caught a glimpse of a tiny blush on the boy's face. A small smile found its way to his face as he walked back to the couch, knowing he had guessed right.

"Let's continue", he said, guide in hand again.

"My thoughts exactly", Marik concurred. He quickly cleaned everything up, put his chair back on the ground and the laptop on the desk. Once seated, he nodded for Bakura to continue where they left off.

"Let's see...where was I...", mumbling he scanned the text.

"Scantiness", Marik simply said.

"Ah yes, here we are. 'In addition, it tends to constantly autofocus itself.' It's still going on about the camera."

"Well, this is an obvious reason as to why I shouldn't use it. It would constantly be drawn to my midriff and wouldn't film the actual game at all.", Marik happily nodded to himself. Bakura wanted to comment on Marik's immense mood swings, but for now he was just happy that the boy was back to his old obnoxious self that the thief had grown to like.

" 'A more complicated, but more efficient way, is using a Capture Card,...'"

"A what?"

"A Capture Card.", Bakura repeated.

"Am I supposed to challenge my laptop to a children's card game in order to do a Let's Play?", the Egyptian asked incredulous. He knew card games were the answer to a lot of problems but he couldn't really imagine how this was supposed to work. Maybe it was referring to a specific card that he had to insert or something. He picked up the laptop and examined it closely.

"Why is it always a bloody card game?", Bakura sighed. "Why doesn't it ever involve knives?"

"Oh, don't complain Fluffy and help me think of which card could be meant." Marik said as he put the laptop back down again, having located a few slots that might serve the purpose.

"No.", the whitehead flat-out refused.

Marik let out an exasperated sigh and turned around again. "Oh for the love of Ra! Why not?"

"Because you're bound to do something stupid like putting it in random holes."

"I wasn't planning that!", he lied. The thief didn't buy it, Marik judged by the look he was getting. "Well, then what do you think they mean by Capture Card?"

"I think it has nothing to do with a children's card game at all."

"But, it says card, how could it not be a card game?"

"Look, let's just continue reading the guide, it'll probably explain itself." Marik couldn't really argue with that reasoning so he agreed.

"Right. Hmm...blah blah ah! 'is using a Capture Card hooked up to your computer, or a camera with an AV Input recording the game.'"

"Oh so we have a choice! Excellent!"

"You're going to go for the AV thing then?"

"No. I don't want that so-called hero of a pharaoh in my apartment."

"OUR apartment. Wait, why the bloody hell would that wanker come here?"

"Meh, details, don't be difficult now Fluffy. Why? Isn't it obvious why?"

"I think it's obvious that it isn't obvious at all."

"Very amusing. Well, allow the great Marik Sebastian Ishtar III to enlighten you then!"

"Yes. Please do, oh great one", Bakura replied sarcastically. Said 'great one' either didn't catch it or he ignored it.

"AV stands for Anti Villain, in other words a hero, and the Pharaoh is supposed to be one. And if he's going to be here to film then I'd rather take my chances with the cards."

...And now Bakura's forehead hurt. One could write an entire thesis about the workings of Marik's brain and still it wouldn't cover one tenth of it. The result would be an interesting read indeed. Something for teachers, scientists, psychiatrists and philosophers to mull over for the longest of times. Seeing as Bakura was none of those, he didn't bother. He knew it was pointless anyway.

"We'll go with the Capture Card then." He simply said, rubbing his forehead a little. The Egyptian seemed a bit disappointed for the lack of reaction to his truly brilliant deduction, but nodded in agreement nonetheless.

" 'You can use your camera to record your commentary, but it is...'"

"Let me guess, it's not recommended? Why do they keep mentioning useless things!"

" '...recommended to use a program...'"

"Wait, what, now it IS recommended? This guide isn't really consistent, is it?"

" '...like Audacity to actually record your commentary professionally.'"

Marik blinked at this, clearly confused. "You lost me there". The thief sighed, "The bloody camera is not recommended. What you need is a program like Audacity. You'd have known that if you had just stayed quiet and listened instead of commenting on every little thing I said!", he replied a bit angrily, growing a bit impatient with the sandy-blond.

"Hey! I was listening! How else could I comment?", said blond answered smugly.

"That's not what I meant, Marik. Anyway, just keep your commentary skills for your actual Let's Play videos." "IF we ever get there that is...", he added as an afterthought.

"Fine.", Marik huffed, "So Audacity, was it? I think I have Audacity to record my commentary."

"Well, you certainly have THE audacity..." Marik glared a little at this but then smirked, "You know, it's not audacity if it is founded."

"I rest my case."

"Nyah! Just continue on! I have the EFFing program, so there's no need to further indulge in this subject!"

" 'Programs like FRAPS will let you record gameplay on your computer.' End of step three. Finally..."

"Wait, now they mention that? Ah well, at least now I don't have to worry about the cards or having the Pharaoh over. Still they could've mentioned it earlier. If I were to create such a guide I would add a list of things you'd need."

"Well, it does have that."

"What? Why did you withhold this valuable information from me Fluffy?"

"Because all it says is: 'Things you'll need: A way to record your video game and a video game'."

"Oh wow, that's frigging brilliant!", the Egyptian replied sarcastically whilst rolling his eyes.

"I know.", Bakura concurred, "So, FRAPS it is?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, step four."

"Wait what, there's still more?"

"Yes, 'spread the word', oh wait I was supposed to yell that.", He cleared his throat to repeat himself but Marik stopped him. "Don't. My Steves are already on it."

"Step five, and this is apparently the most important step, 'upload your videos'"

"Wow, the guy who wrote this must have an IQ of at least 5. Upload your videos, would've never thought of that! What's step six, buy yourself some cookies to celebrate your success?", sarcasm was once again evident in his voice as he impatiently spun around on his chair. Bakura let out a little laugh at this. "Actually,...", Marik continued, stopping his spinning before he became dizzy, "cookies sound good right about now. Bakura, fetch me some cookies! Go on!"

"I'm not your dog!", the thief scowled. Marik opened his mouth to retort but Bakura beat him to it. "Nor am I a kitty! Get your own cookies."

"But, Bakuraaaa~", Marik nagged, but was still met with a stern "no". The Egyptian pouted and Bakura cursed under his breath. This time however, he was determined not to give in. He pulled his eyes away from the pouting boy and looked at the guide. "That was the final step, by the way. Though there are still tips and warnings." He began reading, hoping it would distract the Egyptian. "I don't need tips.", Marik replied, pout gone. Bakura thanked Zorc for the boy's short attention span. "Warnings?"

"How many?"

"Two."

"Go ahead then. After that, we're done right?"

"Yes. Warning one: 'don't be offensive with your jokes'."

"Meh, people need to learn to handle a joke. Second?"

" 'Don't reveal any personal information, nothing is worse than viewers asking for' and I quote, 'what street do you live in California?'"

Marik blinked, "But I don't live in California!"

"It's just an example Marik. But seriously, don't mention where we live or we'll be sweeping fangirls off our doorstep for the rest of our lives." They both shivered visibly at the mere thought of it. Pushing that mental thought away, Bakura got up and stretched. "Well, we're done. About bloody time, I'd say..."

"Excellent! I can finally start!", Marik exclaimed happily.

"Have fun. I'm going to bed.", he said as he walked away. "Hey, wait! I suddenly remembered! You have to get me that FRAPS program first!" Marik called after him.

Bakura sighed. "Marik, look outside, it's already dark and I'm tired. Good night!" The thief quickly closed the hallway door behind him before Marik could respond.

"Fine, but first thing tomorrow!", the Egyptian yelled. He shut his laptop down and went to his own room to get some sleep as well. Tomorrow, he would finally be able to start this new project of his. He could barely wait!

In his room, Bakura let out a breath of relief as he collapsed on his bed. Even though he had spent the majority of the day on the couch, he couldn't feel more exhausted. His partner in crime could be so tiring at times. ...Most times actually. As he crawled under the covers, the whitehead realized he had just spent his entire day trying to get a game started. First the installation and then that dreaded Let's Play. An entire day...

As he drifted off to sleep, one simple conclusion appeared in his mind.

He really should find himself a hobby.

* * *

><p>Yes, cameras were invented by fangirls. Apparantly.<p>

I could've changed the text from the guide to fit better but I found it more fun to write when I didn't, so I didn't.

Any and all reviews are still welcome!

Chibiscuit


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